Department of Geography GEO 271

Everything is related to everything else, but near things are more related than distant things.

1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8

Waldo Toblers First Law of Geography

Definitions of Geography Explanation in Geography Nature of Geographic Data Sources o f Geographic Data Research in Geography [Meaning & Importance] Types of Research Research Processes Ethical Considerations
Steps in Scientific Research

1.1 Definitions of (physical) Geography and Types Geography is description in space. Elements of Geography at the beginning of the Modern Era constituted: [a] Description of other places (regional geography); [b] Explanation of natural phenomena (physical geography); [c] Commonalities among places/search for universally applicable rules (physical/general geography); [d] Relationships between humans and the environment (physical geography underlies human geography), and; [e] Importance of spatial relationships Geography is the study of the locational and spatial variation in both physical and human phenomena on Earth. Kant (1757) divided geography into Physical Geography (natural conditions of the earth and what it contains) and Other geography (in various subfields

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

focused on the expression of human occupancy of the earth as it is influenced and underlain by physical geography). Geography is much more than cartography, the study of maps. It not only investigates what is where on the Earth, but also why it is there and not somewhere else, sometimes referred to as "location in space". It studies this whether the cause is natural or human. It also studies the consequences of those differences. For example, Physical geography is concerned with the natural environment, and includes study of the solid and fluid constituents of the environment together with the life forms that exist within the constituents. The core of enquiry into the natural environment is the question How does it work? and this implies the investigation of processes. 1.2 Explanation in Geography 1.2.1 A General Overview What is Explaining? Put simply, explaining is giving understanding to another , (Brown & Hatton l982, Explanations and Explaining). The underlying premise of explanation is to present or draw out a set of linked statements each of which are understood and which together lead to a solution of a problem. The set of linked statements constitute the explanation. The linked statements may be labelled keys since they unlock understanding. Each key may be a generalisation or a principle and it may contain examples or illustrations. When the problem is complete, there may be summaries of key statements during the explanation as well as a final summary.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

The keys are the heart of explaining. If an explanation is to be understood then it should not only to consider the problem to be explained but also the knowledge and characteristics of the target of explanation! There are different types of explanation. George Brown (Lecturing and Explaining (1978)) notes that there are three main types of explanation - the interpretive, the descriptive and the reason-giving. They approximate to the questions What ?, H o w? and Why?. Interpretative explanations specify the central meaning of a term or statement or they clarify an issue. Examples are answers to the questions, What is geography?. Descriptive explanations describe processes, structures and procedures such as, How do rivers form?. Reason- giving explanations involve principles or generalisations, motives,

obligations or values, and include causes (though most philosophers prefer to distinguish causes and reasons). Examples of reason-giving explanations are answers to the questions, Why do some rivers meander?. Noteworthy, is fact that a particular explanation may involve all three types. Thus in explain ing how rivers form, may want to describe the process, give reasons for it and perhaps define certain key terms. One may have to decide which type of explanation should be the first in a sequence. One could proceed from formal interpretation to description and then end with reasons, or one could begin by describing the structure or process, or one could begin with reasons. Sometimes a problem appears to require one type of explanation yet at its heart there is a deeper question, which requires a differe nt type of explanation. The deeper problems are usually Why? problems. Thus, the question How does a river form? contains the hidden question at its heart Why do rivers form?.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

The threefold classification of explanations outlined above is not perfect, it will help us formulate a premise for explanation in geography. Key Issues in Providing an Explanation [a] The structure and sequence of the explanation; [b] The key points in the explanation: [c] The examples, which will be used to illustrate the key points; [d] The terms that will require definition What kinds of explanations may be required by these questions and

instructions? [a] What is explaining? [b] Why are reason-giving explanations easier to identify than descriptive or interpretative explanations? [c] Why do trees have roots? Or the common kid question of why is milk white when a cow the grass is green? 1.2.2 Explanation in Geography What is the nature of explanation in geography? Are there different kinds of explanation in geography? Explanation in geography involves describing a process or processes and further explaining the process by reference to physical laws. E.g. as part of the explanation of why it rains one has to describe the process of cloud formation and at some point reference has to be made to the gas laws. One has also to pay attention to the ideas of cause and effect, cumulative causation and the interrelatedness of factors. The importance of the time and space dimension must not be forgotten, as processes opera te within a particular spatial/environmental context.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

Explanation in geography usually means to explain: @ a spatial distribution , @ Or to explain the processes that lead to a particular spatial distribution, spatial variations or spatial differentiation . This is because geography is concerned with the description and explanation of the areal/ spatial differentiation on the earths surface. The individual objects/phenomena that make up a spatial distribution are arranged so that their patterns , density, and dispersion can be analysed. @ Pattern is the geometric arrangement of the objects/phenomena; @ Density is the number of objects/phenomena per unit area, and; @ Dispersion is how spread out from each other the objects/phenomena are. Pattern is defined as t he distances between points and the arrangements of points in space. The underlying assumption of this conceptualisation is that geometric objects like areas can be reduced to points. There are two main components of pattern @ Composition : Composition refe rs to the variety and relative abundance of individual objects/phenomena on the earths surface. @ Configuration or Structure: Structure connotes the spatial arrangement, position, orientation, or shape complexity of individual objects/phenomena. Measures of pattern are established through exploration of the physical space relationships in terms of: @ Proximity; @ Adjacency , and; @ Density of occurrence of the objects/phenomena in space.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

In retrospect, typically, pattern implies a non-random distribution of count data (tallies) or measurements, with respect to dispersion, adjacency, or frequency (although random is also a pattern, it is usually not as interesting). Pattern often varies with scale, and so scale is typically central to the definition of pattern. Consequently, when providing an explanation of individual objects/phenomena on the earths surface, Geographers can compare one spatial distribution with another by comparing the three elements of pattern, density, and dispersion, using the measures of proximity, adjacency and density of occurrence. Most concepts, theories & laws in geography are premised on the components of pattern and the consequent space relationships of proximity, adjacency and density. An example is, Distance Decay, which denotes "decreasing occurrence of events, activities, and effects with increasing `distance' from the location from which these things originate or from which they exert influence" (Amedeo and Golledge 1975). What other concept, theory? However, a general problem that geographers face is the use maps as the principal tool of explanation, and maps always introduce error. How? Why? Hint: What is a map? Map = diagrammatic representation of the earth's surface (or part of it)

In discussing explanation in Geography, we also have to consider spatial analysis.

But what is Spatial Analysis? Spatial analysis refers to the investigation of patterns or discernible structure in spatial data. The investigation seeks to provide an explanation of the relationships and interactions between the observed locational pattern of objects in 2 -dimension space and other attributes.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

Spatial Analysis involves processing information about geography. The aims of spatial analysis are centred on the search for patterns in spatial phenomena, involving their description, prediction, and optimisation.

Spatial analysis further involves the modelling of such relationships and interactions for the purpose of geographic understanding or prediction.

Two categories of understanding of spatial phenomena are often identified: static and dynamic .

The static approach concerns itself with simply describing the geometric features . An example is "how urban land values vary from one location to another".

Providing an explanation beyond description necessitates considering, for example the influences of distance from the CBD. When this is done, the attempt to understand spatial phenomena then falls into the second category. That is dynamic explanation.

Dynamic explanation attempts to relate locational pattern to the determinant processes , and also identify the particular process that influences the

observable pattern or spatial structure.

Spatial structures are defined as "including areal or curvilinear patterns of economic activities such as lan duse patterns, urban structure, transportation networks, and market or supply areas".

In general, spatial analysis takes an integrated form that comprises both description and explanation.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

Spatial analysis constitutes the study of three inter-related themes: ? Spatial arrangement - refers to the locational pattern of objects under study. ? Space- time processes - space-time processes are concerned with how spatial patterns are modified by movement of objects or human-space interactions. ? Spatial forecasting - seeks to predict the likely future patterns.

Explanation of the spatial structure takes two forms.

First - The behavioural approach . That is the explanation where spatial pattern is considered to be a function of factors influencing human behaviour and decision making, and focusing on human activity systems.

Second The Institutional Approach That is explanation that focuses on the constraints imposed on human behaviour by societal institutions in the effort to interpret spatial patterns in urban an d other areas.

1.2.3 Constructing an Explanation in Geography Harvey (1969) in Explanation in Geography argues that the explanation of the occurrence of an event (individual object/phenomena) X , at a certain location and time consists of operations that explicitly indicate the causes or determinant factors of the event (individual object/phenomena) X. This implies that, according to certain laws 1 (L ), a set of events of the kind Y1 , Y2 , to Y n have caused the event X to be explained (Fig. below).

L1, L2, .. Ln (set of appropriate laws) Laws denote a generalisation based on recurring facts or events. The term is also used interchangeably with theory. Therefore X (the event to be explained)
1

Y 1, Y 2, .. Y n

(set of ini tial conditions)

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

The problem with this paradigm is that it manifests the tendency of not describing events (individual object/phenomena) in a random manner. Harvey (1969) argues, that in using this theoretical paradigm "we seek rather to impose some coherence upon our descriptions, to make them rational and realistic, to try to bring out what we understand of a situation by patterning our descriptive remarks in a particular way." When conceived through the rationalisation of explanation in geography, Harvey here contradict s himself as he acknowledges that the purpose of explanation may be regarded as making an unexpected outcome an expected outcome, of making a curious event seem natural or normal. This simply conforms to the main aim of theory construction. @ That is to reveal the 'order in seeming chaos' and consequently to allow information derived from certain individual cases to provide an understanding of the other individual cases.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

Harvey (1969) in Explanation in Geography further notes that there are three ways in which an explanation can provide an expected outcome; and thus making a curious event seem natural or normal. These are: @ Relational (inductive) explanation; @ Deductive- predictive explanation, and; @ Model explanation. Note that most geographers only ac knowledge the first two. Relational Explanation @ That is explanation is simply concerned with relating the individual object/phenomena or event to be explained to other individual object/phenomena or events which we have experienced, and which either through familiarity or analysis, we no longer find surprising. @ This form of explanation simply seeks to provide a network of connections between individual object/phenomena or event. Deductive-Predictive Explanation @ This form of explanation seeks to establis h statements or `laws' and show, empirically, that these laws govern the behaviour of the various types of events/phenomena. @ These laws can be used to predict processes or events/phenomena. @ Prediction in any science depends at least in part on history, fro m which future trends are often established. Prediction usually comes about through the analysis of a process. Model based Explanation @ This seeks to provide an explanation by way of analogy or model. @ A model is simply an abstraction (concept, idea or generalisation) used to communicate information about a particular system/phenomena.

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."

Lastly, it is worth noting that explanation involves the interconnectedness of three philosophical issues. These are: @ Perceptions (percepts) experience, observation; @ Metal constructs and images (concepts)/Thought, and; @ Linguistic representations (terms)/Language. Explanation is the ability to communicate, and therefore we should think of explanation as taking place through the medium of language. The language should translate the percepts and concepts in an understandable manner!

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"The knowledge that best moulds our lives, is the most distant from the pieces of paper that reflect the classrooms we sat in."